Everyone has a different idea of where you should go to eat in New York City. There is an abundance of restaurants, cafes, and bars that make it impossible to experience everything in a set timeframe. I had a massive list of places to hit and honestly it was a little unrealistic that I was going to make it to all of them due to time and stomach capacity restraints, but I tried nonetheless. Below are some of the places I tried and brief descriptions of what I ate.

Sarabeth’s

This was our first meal welcoming us to the city and man was it good. We had breakfast at their Central Park South location (there are a few Sarabeth locations throughout the city, check them out here) so we would be close to what we wanted to do for the day. We came in around noon due to our flight and getting ready, but they serve breakfast here until 3:30PM so it was perfect. After a brief survey of the menu, we decided to split the crab cake eggs benedict and lemon ricotta pancakes neither of which disappointed.

The benedict was composed beautifully with a thicker than usual english muffin making this a filling breakfast choice if you are craving something savory. The lemon ricotta pancakes were wonderful as well for those sweet lovers out there. This dish reminded me of a fluffy, creamy, lighter version of a lemon pound cake.

Sant Ambroeus

This is another place with a few locations in NYC. We came across this cafe on Madison Ave. in need of a quick bite and some coffee. It had great reviews and turned out to be a quaint spot to stop into.

Sant Ambroeus had an excellent selection of pastries, coffees, teas, and bonus: coffee cocktails to choose from. It also appeared that they served brunch, lunch, and dinner for those wanting a full meal. We settled on a gianduia, a delicious chocolate hazelnut pastry, to share and I took a coffee cocktail for myself as it was almost happy hour and I was on vacation.

Skylark Rooftop

Next up was The Skylark rooftop, a place we found by chance as the other rooftops we tried going to in the area were booked for private events. This was honestly meant to be as we found a great table with an excellent view of the Empire State Building…literally so close I could almost touch it.

This was all made even better by a cocktail list so amazing I had trouble choosing. True to form I went with a gin cocktail by the name of The Coco. All the walking had worked up our appetites so we settled on ordering a couple small plates to share as well. Their “Dinner by the Bite” menu did not disappoint as it offered a variety of delicious options no matter what mood you were in. We went with the Shrimp Scampi Pizetta and the Barbecue Short Rib Bites. The shrimp pizetta was my favorite of the two. The crust was perfectly crisp and the shrimp done to perfection, with a hint of lime, paired nicely with the creamy ricotta cheese all topped with microgreens. I could have eaten the whole thing myself. The short ribs were delicious as well, tender and the perfect bite sized portions. I would definitely recommend checking this place out if you’re in the mood for a beautiful view of the city paired with tasty drinks and food.

Sadelle’s

Craving a bagel? Check out Sadelle’s in SoHo which has many great breakfast options especially for those bagel lovers out there. I was loving my choice of a plain bagel with house salmon, cream cheese, onions, and capers. It was expensive for a bagel sandwich at $16.00, but it is New York, and you could tell everything was fresh and made with quality ingredients.

Ladurée

Just a short walk away was Ladurée’s SoHo location. We came for the macarons but stayed for the pictures. Really though this location was picture perfect and offered lunch and dinner items beyond their dessert menu. As it was not even 20 minutes since my Sadelle’s bagel I opted to stick with dessert and coffee. I tried their Café Viennois along with four macarons (I tried pistachio, salted caramel, chocolate, and a seasonal tea flavored one) and Millefeuille Praline which is basically a praline napoleon. This was one of the best experiences I had as it combined my favorite things (coffee and dessert) in a beautiful and serene setting as we dined outside in the garden area.

Sotto 13

This is on my short list of awesome places because they have a prix fixe dinner deal that is $39/person and this includes wine. What more could a girl ask for? If you’re craving Italian check this place out for dinner and consider the prix fixe menu which is set up to share family style. You get to choose three appetizers and three pastas to share for the table and each person gets to choose a quartino of wine, which is equal to about a glass and a half.

We selected the arugula salad, wood fired meatballs, and portobello pizza for the starters all of which were amazing but if I had to pick a favorite I think it would have to be the meatballs. For the main courses/ pastas we went with hand cut rigatoni (spicy lamb sausage, grilled octopus, market greens), fettuccine (bolognese, parmigiana), and the chef’s special of the day. This was such a delicious deal to find in New York City and a place I would definitely visit again.

Poco

As much as I was obsessed with bottomless brunches in the city we actually only went to one, on a Friday. I cancelled Sunday’s brunch as there was no way I was going to make it out by 11am after staying out past 3am on Saturday night.

We found Poco on a few “best NYC brunches lists” and I am glad we decided to give it a try. The food was delicious, we split the lobster mac and cheese…(OMG so good you need to have this!!!) and I also had “The Cure” (crispy tortillas with salsa verde, queso blanco, topped with two scrambled eggs). Brunch runs $30 for an entree and unlimited mimosas for 1.5 hours. They were very attentive on the bottomless mimosa front and refilled my glass often so you are in for a pretty good deal here.

Cha Cha Matcha

I felt cooler for going here. I really needed a caffeine fix after brunch and mimosas so we headed here as we were a short walk and subway ride away. This place recently opened and has been getting some press. It’s the spot that’s been making those lattes with people’s faces in the foam (and by people I mean celebrities, etc.). Cha Cha Matcha serves both matcha and coffee drinks so they have you covered no matter what you’re craving. I opted to try the Coconut Matcha Latte with an extra shot and loved it.

Loopy Doopy Rooftop Bar

The thing to try here is their popsicle cocktails. They are a bit pricy for drinks at around $22 but were delicious and came with beautiful views of the Hudson, so worth trying at least once! There are multiple flavors of popsicles to choose from that change seasonally (all containing liquor) and are served in a large glass of prosecco or rosecco. Just make sure to visit on a day that is not windy as the rooftop may be closed.

Tea at Bergdorf Goodman

As mentioned in a previous post I love tea service, so naturally we had afternoon tea in New York. I loved it! They brought all the tea sandwiches, scones, and petits fours out on a tiered platter and we worked our way up from the bottom.

These were some of my favorite picks from the week I spent in NYC. We went to a few other spots and bars not detailed above, but I have listed them below as I still recommend checking them out; I just wasn’t able to take many pictures while at these spots.

The Standard High Line Rooftop

Gansevoort Meatpacking District Rooftop Bar

Smorgasburg in Brooklyn (food festival and flea market with tons of vendors)

Chelsea Market

RARE View Rooftop

Antonucci’s on the Upper East Side

I definitely did not hit everything on my list but loved all the experiences I did have! I can’t wait to be able to go back to the city and cover more of my list/ add to it, maybe one day I’ll even make the move!

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About Me

Hi! I'm Savannah but you can call me Sav! Welcome to That Savvy Life, a lifestyle blog focused on everything I am most passionate about. I'll cover everything from food, drink, travel, fashion, beauty, and more! At the end of the day I just want to create a life I am in love with and inspire others to do the same with fresh content from my savvy and sassy POV.